Self-Sacrificing Hero
by NeoResilience
Summary: Harrison James Potter had a thing for putting his life on the line for other, but what about his Soul? After a confrontation from Death about his actions during the Seventh Year, Harry is given a chance for one last adventure. [No set pairings][Dark, but not evil, Harry][Vague Idea that might transform into something more]


He blinked. One simple movement, not even conscious. One moment he was gazing into her eyes and the next he found himself in a void of gray. Cloaked, like no one could see him, but felt as if he was being watched. He felt his mouth go dry, like his mouth was filled with ash.

_Harrison James Potter._

Was that in his head? Was this real? He thought he heard Dumbledore chuckling at these thoughts. As quickly as the voice came, it had gone. A passing memory; he couldn't even tell you what the voice sounded like.

_You poor, poor_ _boy._

Again, the voice. He looked around, yet saw _nothing. _A feeling of dread began to rise in him, doubts that he secretly held from his fiancée and best friends. Voldemort was still in his head, after all these years. After the scans, the therapy, _after him dying for the cause: _the Horcrux was still active.

_Wrong. Tom is dead. So are you._ _So are hundreds of thousands of lives. _

He blinked, or tried to, but the vision of gray would not vanish. He was dead? How?

_You really thought you could call yourself my Master? I. Own. You. I own everyone. They all come to me, in the end. _

Master? Was this...was this Death? But he wasn't Master of Death, not really. He never united the Hallows. He touched all three, yes, but never had all in his possession at once. He never touched the Wand until after he dropped the Stone.

_Ah, but you own them. _YOU _laid claim to them. My Cloak, still in your pocket. The Wand you so arrogantly thought you could simply return to the corpse of a meddlesome fool. The Stone you left in the forest, like some common pebble. You, Master of Death? No. I am Master of YOU._

Harry swallowed past the taste of ash, recognizing how royally fucked he was. There was no anger in the words; only truth. He knew he should have simply destroyed them. Anyone could stumble upon the stone. The cloak would get passed on, eventually. The wand was safe, wasn't it? Not unless someone defiled Dumbledore's grave once more. Someone else who put the facts together, figured out the secret.

_You can fix it, you know. Destroy the Hallows. It is very simple. _

Destroy them? But he was dead. It is too late.

_Not entirely. You're in-between. More than a ghost, less than a body. You will never get your body back, but your soul still sits on Earth. For now._

So, what, he could gather the Hallows and then simply just wish them destroyed? How was that to work out?

_Gather the Hallows. Go to the Veil. Offer tribute to your Master._

He fought back a snarl of frustration. Or what? I'm already dead.

_Do this for me, Uniter, and I will grant you a boon. Your soul is doomed, but others are not. _

Others? What others? And my soul is doomed? What does that mean?

_Unite the Hallows once more. Destroy the Hallows. Save the souls of the Fallen. _

Harrison James Potter blinked, and found himself looking over his body. Ginny shaking him, begging him to wake up. He reached for her, reached _through_ her. He thought he felt an ache at seeing her sobbing as the realization sunk in. He understood he was dead. And with death came an understanding that he didn't have a choice in the matter. He never had a choice. But now he did have one. He could simply pass on; let go of this life entirely, go beyond death. He could do that, or he could fix something in his existence. He recognized that Death was right; he was careless with the Hallows.

With his decision made, Harry gathered the cloak from where it was draped over a chair. It _leaped_ into his hand when he reached for it. With Hogwarts in mind, he set out to gather the remaining two Hallows.

Author's Note: I'm testing an idea out here, with no promises as to whether I will continue this on a regular basis or if I will work on it for a small amount of time and then abandon it. I truly don't know. Leave your thoughts in a review, if you'd like. While it's certainly no guarantee that it will influence this work in any way, encouragement is appreciated all the same. Horcrux Potter is abandoned.


End file.
